Seam-presser



Oct. 22, 1963 A. cap-ruccl SEAM-PRESSER Filed March 22, 1961 M INVENTOR.

Anthony G. Tucci ATTORNEY United States Patent Ofiice 3,107,447 Patented Oct. 22, 1963 3,107,447 SEAM-PRESSER Anthony G. Tucci, 96-02 103111 Ave., Ozone Park, N.Y.

Filed Mar. 22, 1961, Ser. No. 97,681 V 7 Claims. (Cl. 38-10) This invention relates to a pressing and drying apparatus, and in particular to an apparatus adapted to press seams in connection with the manufacture of clothing.

In the manufacture of articles of clothing, it is customary to finish each seam by pressing it so that the narrow strips of cloth which lie outside the line of stitching are each bent back to lie flat against the interior surface of the garment. A number of methods have been proposed to carry out the seam-pressing operation. In many instances, the seam is simply opened by hand and pressed open with a hand steam-iron. When this is done, the steam iron is customarily provided with means for shutting off the steam so that the steamed, pressed seam can be dried by a dry-ironing step using the same hand iron.

In another conventional mode of operation, particularly useful where heavy, springy fabrics are being treated, two irons are used, one being a hmd steam-iron which is used to open the seam, and the other a fixed iron capable of exerting greater pressure than can be achieved by the use of a hand-iron. A conventional type of fixed iron for this purpose is known as a jump-iron, and is so designed 7 that by stepping or jumping on a suitable pedal, the operator can apply the full weight of his body, amplified by mechanical advantage, to the pressing operation.

These and other known arrangements for the accomplishment of the seam-pressing operation have suffered from certain disadvantages. For one thing, they required the operator to carry out at least two sequential operations on each workpiece; the steam-pressing which initially opens the seam and sets the fabric in its desired configuration, and the drying operation which removes the moisture resulting from the steaming. In the interest of increased production, this frequently resulted in the operator paying inadequate attention to the drying step. For another, they required constant manual operation and lifting of the hand-iron, with resulting operator fatigue. Further, they required both steps to be carried out on one workpiece before the operator could proceed to the next.

It is an object of this invention, therefore, to provide an improved apparatus for the pressing of seams. Another object is to provide such an apparatus, which reduces to a minimum the number of manual operations required of the operator. Still another object is to provide a seampressing machine in which the drying of one workpiece can be carried out simultaneously with the steam-pressing of the next, without further effort or attention on the part ship to said belt, and means for heating said drying iron,

said drying iron being of a width approximating the width of said belt and of a length in the direction of travel of said belt sufficient to effect drying of said fabric as said fabric is transported by said belt in contact with said drying iron.

Referring now to the figures, FIG. 1 is a side elevation of one embodiment of the present invention, viewed partly in section along the line *11 FIG. 2.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of the embodiment of FIG. 1, viewed partly in section along the line 22 of FIG. 1.

"FIG. 3 is a schematic side elevation analogous to FIG. 1, showing another embodiment of the invention.

In the operation of the apparatus according to FIGS. 1 and 2, a workpiece is fed in, seam side up, over conveyor belt 11, the operator manually opening the seam with the aid of shoe 12, which is preferably pivotally mounted, as at 22. As the workpiece is carried forward by the belt, it passes successively under steam-chest 13 and drying iron 14. In this embodiment, steam-chest 13 is integral with drying iron 14 and is provided with steam vents 15, so that it constitutes in effect, a steam-pressing iron. Alternatively, the steam-chest may be part of shoe 12. The moisture introduced into the fabric in pressing under the steam chest is removed during its passage under the drying iron, and the workpiece emerges from the drying iron fully pressed and dried. The necessary pressure for the ironing operation is provided by compression springs 16 hearing against the top of the iron and against any suitable rigid structure, represented at 17, which may be a structural member of the housing building but is preferably a part of the machine itself. The belt is provided with conventional drive means, not shown, and is provided with control means so that the operator may start and stop the belt travel at will, and control the belt speed when it is running. The control means is a preferably foot-operated control such as the foot-treadle control customarily used with sewing machines. The belt drive arrangement should preferably provide for a creeping or very slow speed, to prevent sticking of the fabric to the iron when the normal forward travel of the belt is interrupted and the belt would otherwise be at rest. The

supply of steam to the steam-chest is controlled by valve 18, which is also under control of the operator. Preferably, valve 18 is controlled by the same foot-treadle as the belt, so that steam is supplied to the chest only when belt 11 is in motion. Valve 18, or another valve, should be arranged to allow the operator to shut off the direct steam altogether, for pressing some of the more heator moisture-sensitive synthetic materials.

Suitable means, such as a return line (not shown) should also be provided for removal of condensate from the steam line, particularly on start-up, in accordance with conventional practice.

The dimensions of the belt and of the drying iron are flexible to some extent; however the width of both the belt and the iron should approximate the width of a turned-back searnthat is, about 1-2 inches wide. If the width of the iron, in particular, substantially exceeds the width of a seam, the result will be that not only the seam, but also an adjacent strip of the garment is pressed, resulting in distortion of the shape of the garment, partic ularly where the seam is concave (or convex) one. Such distortion constitutes a defect and cannot be tolerated.

For purposes of clarity, the iron 14 is depicted in FIG. 1 as being somewhat wider than belt 11. In practice,

however, it is generally preferable that they be substantially the same width.

Because of the narrow width of the iron and the belt, the steam will ordinarily escape along the sides of the iron. To facilitate removal of steam during the drying operation, however, the belt may be made of a porous material and arranged to run over a vacuum chest indicated at 19 provided with ports 20 through which the steam is pulled down and out of the workpiece. Alternatively, a portion or portions of the drying iron member may be hollow and provided with a vacuum connection and with ports on the working face, to draw moisture upwardly out of the workpiece, thus eliminating the need for a porous belt;

The length of the drying iron is dependent on three interrelated factors; the belt speed, the temperature of the iron, and the weight of the material in the workpiece. In general, using an iron heated as shown by internal steam conduits 23, with steam at 20 pounds per square inch pressure as the heat source, and working with mediumweight materials such as mens suiting fabrics, the belt speed and iron length should be such as to maintain the fabric in contact with the drying iron for a time period of about one second or more.

The top run of the belt, which constitutes its working face, is set in and slightly above the surface of table 20 In a preferred type of construction the table is made with removable end sections 21 and 21', to facilitate replacement of the belt when necessary. In use, end section 21' serves as a worktable on which the operator feeds the workpieces into the apparatus, and section 21 serves as a receiver for finished workpieces emerging from the machine. From this point, they are picked up by another operator, or by any suitable mechanical means constituting no part of the present invention. The side portions of the table support the fabric pieces adjacent the seam, as the workpiece is carried through. The center or main section of the table is provided with apertures for the two pulleys at either end of the belt, and with a longitudinal furrow, preferably of a depth slightly less than the thickness of the belt, to accommodate the run of the belt and serve as a guide therefor. The material of the table may be any desired material having sufiicient strength to support the pressure of the iron, for example wood or metal. If the table is of wood, the furrow is preferably lined with metal to reduce friction on the belt.

As mentioned above, the necessary ironing pressure is preferably provided by springs as indicated at 16. The pressure may equally well be supplied by a suitable arrangement of weights as will be obvious to those skilled in the art. Whatever the source of pressure, however, it is essential that the iron be supported with sufficient resiliency to accommodate variations in thickness of the material and in particular, variations in the number of thicknesses, for example when a pocket intersects the seam being pressed. In an alternative embodiment, the iron may be rigidly supported, while the belt and its supporting surface are resiliently mounted.

In order to clear the apparatus in case it should become jammed, and to facilitate removal and replacement of the belt, and for other reasons, it is sometimes desirable to lift the drying iron and associated elements, away from the belt. This may be accomplished by any suitable means, indicated generally in FIG. 1 by a system of cables 24 and pulleys 25.

The embodiment of the invention shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in which the iron and the upper run of the belt are straight, is suitable for the pressing of through seams, whether they be straight seams or concave. A concave seam is considered to be one which is concave as viewed from the seam side, for example an elbow seam. It is not adapted for the pressing of convex seams, because the pressing of a convex seam on the apparatus as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 would result in distortion of the material adjacent the seam, destroying the shape of the garment.

For the pressing of convex seams, therefore, a modified form of apparatus is needed. Such a modification is shown schematically in FIG. 3. In FIG. 3, which is a schematic side elevation analogous to the detailed representation of the first embodiment in FIG. 1, it will be noted that the working surfaces of the iron, the belt and the members which support the belt are disposed in a curved arrangement. This embodiment of the invention, in addition to straight and concave seams, will also accommodate any through convex seam, for example the side scam in a mans suit jacket, whose radius of curvature is not substantially smaller than the radius of curvature of the belt path. Although more versatile, this embodiment is somewhat more expensive to construct, and not as rapid in operation as the straight-path embodiment of FIGS. 1 and 2, so that it would not be preferred where only straight or concave seams are to be pressed.

While this invention has been described by way of certain preferred embodiments and illustrated by drawings of the same, these are illustrative only, and the invention is not to be construed as limited, except as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A seam-pressing machine comprising in combination a conveyor belt, steaming means having an elongated pressing surface for steaming a seamed fabric workpiece, said steaming means being positioned in facing relationship to said belt, and drying means in the form of an iron having an elongated pressing surface for drying said workpiece, said drying means being positioned in facing relationship to said belt at a position subsequent, in the direction of travel of said belt, to the position of said steaming means and closely adjacent thereto, the said pressing surfaces of said steaming means and said drying means conforming to the contour of the adjacent portions of said belt, said belt cooperating with the elements of said machine in facing relationship thereto to define a substantially continuous vertically-confined zone extending from the feed point of said machine to a point near the discharge end of said drying means, and means associated with the forward end of said steaming means to facilitate introduction of a workpiece between said steaming means and said belt.

2. A steam-pressing machine comprising in combination a conveyor belt, steaming means having an elongated pressing surface for steaming a seamed fabric workpiece, said steaming means being positioned in facing relationship to said belt, and drying means in the form of an iron having an elongated pressing surface for drying said workpiece, said drying means being positioned in facing relationship to said belt at a position subsequent, in the direction of travel of said belt, to the position of said steaming means and closely adjacent thereto, the said pressing surfaces of said steaming means and said drying means conforming to the contour of the adjacent portions of said belt, said belt cooperating with the elements of said machine in facing relationship thereto to define a substantially continuous vertically-confined zone extending from the feed point of said machine to a point near thedischarge end of said drying means, means associated with the forward end of said steaming means to facilitate the introduction of a workpiece between said steaming means and said belt, and control means for lifting said drying iron away from said belt.

3. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said belt and said drying iron are resiliently urged together by means of springs.

4. Apparatus according to claim 1, in which said steaming means comprises a steam-chest integral with said drying iron.

5. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said drying iron is longitudinally concave in the direction of said belt and said belt is supported in longitudinal contact with said 5 drying iron by means of a convex supporting member having a curvature substantially complementary to the concave curvature of said iron.

6. Apparatus according to claim 1 in which said drying iron is heated by internal steam conduits, said steam conduits terminating in orifices associated with said pressing iron and operative to apply direct steam to said Workpiece.

7. Apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said means for facilitating introduction of a workpiece is a pivotallymounted shoe forward of said drying iron.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Denemark June 16, Bricker et al Dec. 21, Shields Dec. 7, Chinnici Apr. 16, Chinnici Dec. 24, Slagboom et a1. Nov. 3, Gold Jan. 18, Kramer Oct. 1, Kramer Nov. 12, 

1. A SEAM-PRESSING MACHINE COMPRISING IN COMBINATION A CONVEYOR BELT, STEAMING MEANS HAVING AN ELONGATED PRESSING SURFACE FOR STEAMING A SEAMED FABRIC WORKPIECE SAID STEAMING MEANS BEING POSITIONED IN FACING RALATIONSHIP TO SAID BELT, AND DRYING MEANS IN THE FORM OF AN IRON HAVING AN ELONGATED PRESSING SURFACE FOR DRYING SAID WORKPIECE, SAID DRYING MEANS BEING POSITIONED IN FACING RELATIONSHIP TO SAID BELT AT A POSITION SUBSEQUENT, IN THE DIRECTION OF TRAVEL OF SAID BELT, TO THE POSITION OF SAID STEAMING MEANS AND CLOSELY ADJACENT THERETO, THE SAID PRESSING SURFACES OF SAID STEAMING MEANS AND SAID DRYING MEANS CONFORMING TO THE CONTOUR OF THE ADJACENT PORTIONS OF SAID BELT, SAID BELT COOPERATING WITH THE ELEMENTS OF SAID MACHINE IN FACING RELATIONSHIP THERETO TO DEFINE A SUBSTANTIALLY CONTINUOUS VERTICALLY-CONFINED ZONE EXTENDING FROM THE FEED POINT OF SAID MACHINE TO A POINT NEAR THE DIACHARGE END OF SAID DRYING MEANS, AND MEANS ASSOCIATED WITH THE FORWARD END OF SAID STEAMING MEANS TO FACILITATE INTRODUCTION OF A WORKPIECE BETWEEN SAID STEAMING MEANS AND SAID BELT. 